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Titus 3:9-15 - Avoiding Division, Bearing Fruit

16 min read

Paul has just called good works “good and profitable to men” (Titus 3:8). One sentence later, he calls religious disputes “unprofitable and useless.” That contrast governs the close of the letter. The Church has limited attention, time, and strength. It can spend them on controversies that harden people into factions, or it can use them to correct patiently, support the Gospel’s servants, and meet urgent needs. Paul does not choose practical service instead of truth. He shows what “the truth which accords with godliness” looks like when grace has renewed a people: peace without indifference, discipline without revenge, and good works that reach someone before the need becomes a crisis.

Turn Away from Barren Controversy (Titus 3:9)

9 But avoid foolish disputes, genealogies, contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and useless.

Paul does not forbid serious doctrine, careful interpretation, or the defense of apostolic truth. Titus has been commanded to hold fast the faithful word, teach sound doctrine, and rebuke teaching that harms households. Verse 9 addresses a different kind of speech. Its subjects may sound religious and learned, yet its fruit is contention. The decisive words come at the end: these disputes are “unprofitable and useless.” They consume the Church’s strength without producing repentance, clearer obedience, reconciliation, or mercy.

The command “avoid” translates περιΐστασο (periistaso), which can carry the sense of turning away or keeping clear. Paul also calls the controversies ἀνωφελεῖς (anōpheleis), unprofitable, and μάταιοι (mataioi), empty or futile.1 Titus is not asked to win one more round. He is asked to refuse the whole barren pattern. There are arguments whose spiritual danger lies partly in their power to keep us returning: replaying the exchange, searching for allies, sharpening the next answer, and neglecting the person or duty God has actually placed before us.

This can happen in a parish meeting, a family conversation, or an online thread. A dispute may begin with a real question and then become a way to display knowledge, secure a faction, or avoid repentance. Paul’s test is stricter than whether the topic matters. What is this conversation doing to the people in it? Sound teaching can correct error and still bear peace, humility, and holiness. Barren controversy leaves the participants more suspicious, more self-important, and less ready to pray or serve.

St John Chrysostom reads the verse as a question of squandered spiritual energy. He writes that “it is a great injury to be uttering a superfluity of words, when one ought to be teaching, or praying, or giving thanks.”2 His alternatives expose the loss. Time spent feeding vanity cannot also be spent teaching someone who needs truth, praying before God, or giving thanks for mercy.

“Genealogies” and “strivings about the law” must not become an excuse for contempt toward Jewish people or the Old Testament. Paul’s target is the factional and fruitless use of such matters within the Church, not Israel’s ethnicity and not God’s law. The same letter honors the “faithful word” and requires disciplined teaching. The problem is religious knowledge bent toward rivalry rather than godliness.

The usefulness contrast

Verse 9 calls disputes unprofitable; verse 14 warns the Church not to become unfruitful. The passage therefore moves from words that yield nothing to works that meet “urgent needs.” This does not reduce truth to whatever seems efficient. Paul has defended sound doctrine throughout Titus. He now insists that truth should make the Church capable of communion, mission, and mercy. Correct doctrine that is used to feed pride contradicts the godliness it is meant to form.

Admonish Before Refusing Division (Titus 3:10-11)

10 Reject a divisive man after the first and second admonition, 11 knowing that such a person is warped and sinning, being self-condemned.

This is a hard command, and Paul builds its safeguard into the sentence: “after the first and second admonition.” Rejection is not the first response to disagreement. The person receives warning and instruction, with a real opportunity to turn. The Church must distinguish honest questions, confusion, cultural difference, wounded mistrust, and ordinary disagreement from persistent faction-making after correction.

The adjective translated “divisive” is αἱρετικόν (hairetikon). The word later became closely associated with formal heresy, but here the immediate emphasis is a factious person who continues dividing the community after admonition.3 That context does not make doctrine unimportant. It prevents leaders from using a grave word as a quick label for anyone who challenges them. A servant’s irritation is not evidence of another person’s rebellion.

Paul’s process also prevents discipline from becoming personal revenge. Admonition, νουθεσία (nouthesia), is instruction or warning meant to bring the danger before the person’s mind. Only persistence after two admonitions leads to refusal, παραιτοῦ (paraitou). The aim is the protection of communion and of people being harmed, not humiliation, control, or the leader’s victory. The Church corrects as a community that remembers it too was deceived and was saved according to mercy (Titus 3:3-5); remembered mercy keeps the boundary from becoming contempt without weakening accountable protection or any immediate safeguarding duty.

Verse 11 explains why the final boundary may become necessary. “Warped” translates a form of ἐκστρέφω (ekstrephō), describing a settled turning aside, while αὐτοκατάκριτος (autokatakritos) means self-condemned.4 The person’s continued conduct after correction discloses the judgment. Paul does not rest the decision on rumor, personality conflict, or a moment of impatience.

Chrysostom makes this sequence explicit: “Because he cannot say that no one has told him, no one admonished him; since therefore after admonition he continues the same, he is self-condemned.”5 The warning has been heard, and the divisive work continues. At that point, maintaining a boundary can be an act of pastoral love toward the whole community.

This verse speaks to two opposite temptations. One is to call every difficult person divisive and remove them before patient correction has been attempted. The other is to tolerate continuing harm because setting a boundary feels unmerciful. Paul permits neither haste nor passivity. The Church admonishes truthfully, hopes for repentance, documents the pattern when necessary, uses accountable pastoral authority, and protects the flock when factional harm persists. Anyone dealing with abuse, coercion, or immediate danger should not treat “first and second admonition” as a requirement to remain exposed to harm; proper safeguarding and civil responsibilities still apply.

Send Coworkers So That Nothing Is Lacking (Titus 3:12-13)

12 When I send Artemas to you, or Tychicus, be diligent to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there. 13 Send Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their journey with haste, that they may lack nothing.

The letter now turns from division to coordination. Artemas or Tychicus will relieve Titus. Titus is to join Paul at Nicopolis. Zenas and Apollos must be sent forward with what they need. These names and travel plans are not scraps left after the theology. They reveal the Church as a living network of entrusted service. Leaders are replaceable, coworkers move between communities, winter affects planning, and mission depends on concrete provision.

Titus has been serving in Crete since Paul left him there to set unfinished matters in order and appoint elders in every city. His summons therefore does not mean that the churches are abandoned; another trusted coworker is to come. Responsibility is handed on rather than possessed. Mature ministry prepares relief, receives further formation, and goes where the apostolic work requires.

Several ancient cities were named Nicopolis. The traditional and probable identification is Nicopolis in Epirus, but Titus 3:12 does not settle the question, so certainty would exceed the evidence.6 If Paul meant the Epirote city near modern Preveza, it was the city founded by Octavian to commemorate his victory at Actium in 31 BC.7 The modest phrase “I have decided to spend the winter there” shows disciplined planning around season and place without revealing Paul’s entire itinerary.

Apollos is already known from Acts as an Alexandrian Jew who was eloquent and mighty in the Scriptures.8 Zenas appears nowhere else in the New Testament. His title, νομικός (nomikos), identifies some kind of lawyer or legal expert, but the word alone does not establish whether his expertise was in Jewish law, Roman civil law, or both.9 The uncertainty should remain. What Paul makes certain is the Church’s duty: these coworkers are to be helped on their way so that they lack nothing.

The verb πρόπεμψον (propempson) can mean sending someone forward or helping to equip a journey. Paul strengthens it with the purpose clause, “that they may lack nothing.”10 Christian hospitality is therefore more than a warm farewell. Someone must ask what the mission actually requires: food, lodging, travel funds, introductions, safety, rest, or another pair of hands. Love becomes foresight.

There is also a quiet contrast in the repeated νομικ- root. Paul rejects νομικαὶ μάχαι, quarrels about the law, in verse 9 and commands support for Ζηνᾶν τὸν νομικόν, Zenas the legal expert, in verse 13.11 The recurrence is exact, though deliberate wordplay cannot be proved. At minimum, the two phrases prevent a shallow conclusion: Paul is not hostile to learning or expertise. He is hostile to expertise turned into barren combat. Knowledge becomes fruitful when it serves the Gospel and the people entrusted to the Church.

Learn Good Works for Urgent Needs (Titus 3:14-15)

14 And let our people also learn to maintain good works, to meet urgent needs, that they may not be unfruitful. 15 All who are with me greet you. Greet those who love us in the faith. Grace be with you all. Amen.

“Our people also” widens the command beyond Titus and the named travelers. The whole community must learn to bear the practical weight of mission and mercy. Good works are not left to a few naturally generous people, clergy, or organized ministries. Paul treats them as a discipline the Church must learn.

The verb behind “maintain,” προΐστασθαι (proistasthai), can include taking the lead, managing, caring for, or devoting oneself to something. Paul repeats the same good-works verb used in Titus 3:8, carrying the constant exhortation of the preceding verse into learned responsibility for pressing needs; this contextual connection is clear even though no single English gloss exhausts the verb’s range. “Urgent needs” translates ἀναγκαίας χρείας (anankaias chreias), necessary or pressing needs. The final warning is ἄκαρποι (akarpoi), unfruitful.12 The command is more exact than “be kind.” Believers are to develop sustained responsibility for needs that cannot simply wait.

This is the positive answer to verse 9. Barren disputes are unprofitable; trained mercy is fruitful. One consumes attention while leaving people unchanged. The other notices what is necessary and acts. Yet Paul’s fruitfulness is not productivity culture. He is not measuring the Church by busyness, output, or institutional scale. The fruit is ecclesial and personal: coworkers lack nothing, afflicted people receive help, communion is protected, love becomes visible, and grace reaches ordinary life.

Gems from the Fathers 💎

Chrysostom refuses to reduce these good works to giving money. He includes advocacy, protection, care for widows and orphans, and refuge for the afflicted. Then he makes Paul’s word “learn” active: believers should “wait not for those who are in want to come to them, but … seek out those who need their assistance.”13 Fruitful mercy develops eyes. It notices the exhausted caregiver, the family quietly falling behind, the servant carrying ministry costs alone, the newcomer without relationships, and the person too ashamed to ask.

The letter closes with love “in the faith” and grace “with you all.” Grace is not a decorative ending. It is the source of the life Paul has required. Christ gave Himself to redeem and purify a people zealous for good works (Titus 2:14); God saved according to mercy through washing and renewal by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:4-7). The people who now refuse barren quarrels, protect communion, supply coworkers, and meet urgent needs are living from that gift. Their works do not purchase grace. Grace makes them fruitful.

No exact Coptic lectionary placement for Titus 3:9-15 was verified in the evidence checked for this guide. Indexed Titus 3 readings concentrate on Titus 3:1-7, especially in baptismal and Theophany contexts; those ranges should not be expanded to include this session. The passage still gives the Church a fitting final examination after hearing the letter: has the grace proclaimed in Titus become peace, disciplined care, and useful love among us?

Spiritual Fruit 🍇

  • Notice when controversy has become a passion. A serious subject can become fuel for pride, agitation, or the pleasure of belonging to the correct faction. Watch for the signs Paul exposes: replaying disputes, collecting opponents, neglecting prayer, and becoming less merciful. Turn away from the barren exchange. Use the recovered time to learn, pray, give thanks, reconcile, or serve someone whose need is real.

  • Receive correction before self-defense hardens into division. The divisive person in verses 10-11 is not condemned for asking a question but for persisting after admonition. When a trusted spiritual father, mature believer, spouse, or coworker names a pattern that is harming communion, resist the immediate work of building your case. Ask what fruit your conduct is producing. Confess what is true, seek clarification where needed, and take one visible step toward repair.

  • Set boundaries without hatred. Some readers avoid necessary discipline because they fear being unmerciful; others reach for exclusion because they want relief or control. Paul gives a steadier path: real admonition, time to repent, accountable judgment, and protection when harmful factional conduct persists. Pray for the person’s salvation while refusing to let continuing harm govern the community.

  • Let hospitality become foresight. “That they may lack nothing” asks more than whether we feel supportive. Think of one person carrying the work of the Gospel, family care, or hidden service. Ask what would remove a practical burden this week. A ride, a meal, childcare, lodging, an introduction, reimbursement, or a few hours of competent help can become part of the Church’s mission.

  • Learn to see urgent needs before they are announced. Shame, exhaustion, and fear often keep people from asking. Fruitful mercy pays attention without becoming intrusive. Bring one neglected need into prayer, consult the right person, and act within your responsibility. Christ’s grace frees us from both religious noise and passive goodwill, forming a people whose love becomes useful.

Footnotes

  1. Titus 3:9 Greek interlinear, with lexical pages for περιΐστημι, ἀνωφελής, and μάταιος. ↩

  2. St John Chrysostom, Homily VI on Titus, on Titus 3:8-11, NPNF1 13, trans. Philip Schaff, New Advent. ↩

  3. Titus 3:10 Greek interlinear, with lexical pages for αἱρετικός, νουθεσία, and παραιτέομαι. ↩

  4. Titus 3:11 Greek interlinear, with lexical pages for ἐκστρέφω and αὐτοκατάκριτος. ↩

  5. St John Chrysostom, Homily VI on Titus, on Titus 3:10-11, NPNF1 13, trans. Philip Schaff, New Advent. ↩

  6. Nicopolis reference collection, preserving older dictionary discussions of Nicopolis in Epirus and alternative identifications. ↩

  7. Archaeological Museum of Nicopolis, on Octavian’s foundation of the Epirote city after Actium and the archaeological site near Preveza. The identification with Titus 3:12 is presented as probable, not certain. ↩

  8. Acts 18:24, identifying Apollos as an Alexandrian Jew, eloquent and mighty in the Scriptures. ↩

  9. Titus 3:13 Greek interlinear, displaying Ζηνᾶν τὸν νομικόν. The noun does not settle whether Zenas’s expertise concerned Jewish law, Roman civil law, or both. ↩

  10. Titus 3:13 Greek interlinear, with lexical pages for προπέμπω and λείπω. ↩

  11. Titus 3:9 and Titus 3:13 Greek interlinear texts, displaying μάχας νομικάς and Ζηνᾶν τὸν νομικόν. The lexical recurrence is certain; intentional rhetorical wordplay remains a cautious possibility. ↩

  12. Titus 3:8 and Titus 3:14 Greek interlinear texts, with lexical pages for προΐστημι, χρεία, and ἄκαρπος. ↩

  13. St John Chrysostom, Homily VI on Titus, on Titus 3:12-15, NPNF1 13, trans. Philip Schaff, New Advent. ↩

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